


Simple Kisses

by CityEscape4



Series: Zexal Month 2019 [3]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal
Genre: Multi, Non-Incestuous, Past Lives, Polyamory, Zexal Month
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-15
Updated: 2019-08-15
Packaged: 2020-08-20 23:41:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,119
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20236303
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CityEscape4/pseuds/CityEscape4
Summary: The first time it happens, Durbe is surprised, but writes the event off as a cultural norm he just hadn't picked up on until now.





	Simple Kisses

**Author's Note:**

> Zexal Month 2019 Day 13: Love is a Revolving Door. (Its a day late but oh well)
> 
> I have two OTPs for Zexal, Seraphshipping and Kingdomshipping. But when Zexal Week rolled around, I did Seraphshipping, so for Zexal Month I'm doing Kingdomshipping!

The first time it happens, Durbe is surprised, but writes the event off as a cultural norm he just hadn't picked up on until now. It was simple enough, a kiss on the cheek from both Prince Nasch and Princess Merag as they'd returned him to his quarters in the castle, quarters gifted to him by the King and Queen after he'd befriended their children. He notices Nasch's slightly reddened cheeks as he turns away, and Merag's satisfied smile as she turns away, but he says nothing, and watches them leave before turning in for the night.

From that point on, little changes take place. Nasch and Durbe practice swordfighting with each other in the courtyard longer, and more often than before. Merag comes to spend time with him more often after her prayers and priestess duties are done for the day. When their father lets them participate in council meetings, the twins position themselves to where Durbe is between them, and look to him just the slightest bit more often, as if gauging his opinion what's going on.

The second time it happens, its about a week later, and Durbe asks himself why they hadn't performed this norm before now as he receives another pair of kisses to his cheeks. They had both escorted him to his room multiple times before, and they'd never done this before. So what changed? Was it him? Was it something he'd done? He'd have to ask the next time they did this.

Only instead of days, weeks pass between instances of this happening. In that time, the twins lose both their mother and father, and Nasch is crowned King: the youngest in nearly a century. The loss of both parents hits the growing twins hard, and Durbe ends up more than once tucking in a twin into bed after finding himself their confidant. He remembers the tears seen by no one but him, from both Nasch and Merag, and remembers doing all he can to alleviate their woes to the best of his extent. In both instances, he found himself hugging each twin tightly, letting them cry it out from the security of his hold.

The third time it happens, its months later, and Durbe finds he's missed those kisses. However, this time he's surprised at how instead of kissing at his cheek, Nasch takes one of Durbe's hands and lifts it gently, delicately brushing his lips against his knuckles. The move was much more conservative than a kiss to the cheek, yet the young knight found himself enamored with the action, feeling a low heat rise to his face as he stared at the back of his hand. His attention his only pulled away from that when Merag mirrors the move, using both her hands to lift one of Durbe's so she too could brush her lips against his knuckles. He can't find it in himself to speak, too enamored with the events that just transpired, that he doesn't manage to get a word out before the twins bid him good night, and leave him to his room.

Durbe notices more little changes then; Nasch's little touches, like his shoulder touch he often did when talking to Durbe or his grip when they shook hands lasting longer than before, lingering longer than normal. Merag was more keen to lean against Durbe after a long day, there being one particular instance where they were simply sitting in the palace garden and she fell asleep leaning against him. There was also the insistence from both twins that Durbe deserved to sit in on council meetings, regardless of his country of origin not being Poseidon, because he was Nasch's appointed knight, despite most of the council's wishes. Durbe had spoken to the twins in private, saying that he didn't mind sitting out of council meetings if it meant calming the majority of the council, but Nasch and Merag were having none of it. They insisted Durbe was just as much a part of their kingdom as anyone else, and wanted their council to see that too.

The fourth time it happens, its but a few days later, and he realizes something. They only ever kiss him when they _both_ escort him to his room. He'd been escorted by a single twin numerous times, and neither ever made the move to kiss his cheek or hand by themselves. They kiss Durbe's hands again and he notices a brief, mearly missable look shared between the two royal siblings. Durbe's eyes widen slightly when he recognizes that look. Its the same look he sees in Nasch's eyes when they're deep in their swordfighting, or in Merag's eyes when Durbe makes a particularly clever quip in response to one of Merag's own.

He doesn't know how to describe it, but the look shared between the two twins... was that... competitiveness?

So all the kisses, the little touches, the prolonged contact, the extra time spent together... Were they... Were they competing to court him?

Durbe's so bewildered by the idea that in his amazed stupor, that all he manages to the twins is a 'Goodnight' before retiring to his quarters for the evening, his heart pounding and his face reddening as he closes the door behind him. He raises a hand to his mouth in thought. When he realizes his first thought is 'I might break one of their hearts' as opposed to a thought like 'How do I turn them down', he realizes that perhaps their feelings aren't onesided.

And that realization scares him.

He was a knight from a foreign land, and he'd managed to fall for both the prince and princess-- No, _king_ and princess of this kingdom. He'd be seen as an outsider, a worm trying to wriggle its way into the kingdom's inner workings. Hell, most of the council never liked the fact that he'd been made Nasch's right-hand knight, how poorly would they react to him being courted by not one, but both of the twins?

He'd didn't want to be seen as taking advantage of them. It hand only been a handful of months since they'd lost both their parents, they were still grieving. The council might see his being in a relationship with one of the twins as taking advantage of their mourning state and getting close to them at a moment of weakness. Not only that, but what would his own kingdom say if they found out? Would he be seen as a traitor to the king who knighted him? To the kingdom that he hailed from originally? God forbid the two kingdoms ever went to war, because he would never be able to choose a side.

So how does he choose one twin over the other?

He can't fathom it, picking one of his two closest friends over the other and breaking one's heart. He heavily considers just not accepting either twins feelings; After all, Merag deserved to marry royalty, someone who could give her the world, and Nasch needed someone who would produce him an heir to the throne. Durbe was none of those things for either of them.

But the idea of purposefully hurting them both messes with him. It was for the greater good, wasn't it? Denying their advances only meant that they'd end up with someone more worthy of their affections. So why did it hurt so much to think of either of them with someone else?

He was _really_ starting to realize that their feelings weren't onesided at all.

The fifth time it happens, Durbe stops them. He's practiced this in his head for days now: Acknowledge the courting, put a stop to it, and move on. His feelings didn't matter, he was their knight, not someone they could have a future with. So he speaks.

"What are we doing? What's the meaning of this?" Yes, good, getting to the root of the issue, just like he planned. The twins share a look of hesitancy, like they hadn't expected Durbe to question their motives. He's about to speak again when Nasch finally opens his mouth.

"What do _you_ think we're doing?"

Durbe swallows harshly, feeling a lump begin to rise in his throat. "I believe you are both attempting to court me."

He sees Nasch and Merag grin at that - no please don't, he mentally begs, not when I'm about to turn you both down - and Merag puts a hand on her hip. "Is it working?"

At that simple question, Durbe's cheeks begin to redden. He hadn't expected that, but it was no matter, he'd lie and turn them down. But when he opens his mouth to give his answer, he fonds himself unable to speak, and closes his mouth immediately. He exhales through his nose and looks away from either twin, not knowing what to do or say. His mental plan has come to a screeching halt.

Nasch takes this opportunity to speak, looking concerned, placing a hand on Durbe's shoulder. "If you're uncomfortable with this, we can stop, and--"

"No!" Durbe's head snaps back in their direction, and he's suprised at how quickly his mouth ran before his mind caught up to it. His eyes widen at his outburst, and he's realized what he's said. "I... I mean..." His face is flush with embarrassment, and he doesn't know how to word his jumbled thoughts.

"Durbe."

Both Nasch and Durbe look to Merag then, whose gaze is fixed solely on the knight. She places a hand on Durbe's arm, the one opposite of the shoulder Nasch is still currently holding, and looks him dead in the eye.

"What is it _you_ want?"

He's quiet for a long while, his mind racing. He wants them to be happy, no matter what. He wants to still be the protector, the knight sworn to duty. He wants to keep their reputation as king and princess unsullied. He doesn't want the council breathing down their necks. He doesn't want to be their dirty little secret. He doesn't want to be seen as a paramour hiding being the title of 'knight'. He doesn't want to ruin their futures by going through with this courting.

But he wants to be happy too. How does he achieve all of that in one fell swoop? Where had his plan gone? He was supposed to turn them down, for their sake!

"I want you both to be happy," He begins, smiling weakly at them both. "And I don't think I can give you the happiness you deserve. I'm just a knight. You both deserve better, deserve princes and princesses that can give you that."

"You don't know that." Nasch replies, looking hurt. "And you're not 'just a knight' to us. You're important to us, Durbe."

"We care about you, more than you realize." Merag continues, giving Durbe's arm an affectionate squeeze. "We don't want other princes or princesses. We want you."

"Merag..." Durbe hesitates for a moment, feeling overwhelmed with the situation.

"We want you to be happy too, Durbe." Nasch continues. He and Merag share another look, one unreadable to Durbe, before they both take their hands off of him, and Merag speaks.

"Even if we don't factor into that happiness."

"Of course you do, you both mean everything to me," Durbe admits, despite the voice in his head yelling at him to stick to the plan, to turn them down, to save himself -themselves - from this. "I just..." He grabs at one of Merag's hands and at one of Nasch's, holding them both close to his heart. "How can I possibly choose one of you over the other?"

At that, the twins both give him a confused look. "Choose one over the other?" Merag asks. "What do you mean?"

Durbe stares at them in mirrored confusion. "You're both competing for my affections, aren't you?"

At that, Nasch cracks an amused grin. "Competing?"

Durbe blinks. "Is... is that not what's been happening?"

Merag laughs gently, amusement dancing in her eyes. "Durbe, we both have been trying to court you together. We both want you."

...Oh.

"But your council--"

Nasch scoffs and waves a hand in dismissal. "Don't worry about them. They have no say in this."

"And your people? What will they think?" Durbe asks.

Merag smiles and shakes her head slightly. "Durbe, our people love you, and with good reason. You're a kind and fair man, respectful and true. You've grown up with us. They know you, and trust you."

Durbe is silent then, squeezing their hands briefly, before exhaling. "How is this going to work, then?" He asks, releasing their hands from his hold. Merag puts her hands on her hips, and Nasch folds his arms, the two of them frowning slightly as they look at each other.

"Would you believe that this is our first time doing something like this?" Merag jokes, giving Durbe a coy smile.

Its enough to ease Durbe into laughing, which in turn causes Nasch to smile. "We'll figure this out as we go along." Nasch says with a nod.

"Perhaps the first step is me gathering the courage to be the one to kiss you, as opposed to you kissing me." He says partially as a joke, but the way the twins both light up at that tells him they took him seriously. Durbe's face goes red as he attempts to backtrack his statement, not wanting to sound too bold, but before he can, the twins step closer to him, and Durbe suddenly feels cornered.

Merag makes the first move, walking in front of Durbe and raising her hands to hold either side of his face. She gives him a warm smile, before pulling him in and giving him the chance to close the distance between them. He hesitates for a moment, before taking this chance wholeheartedly, leaning in until his lips touch hers. Her lips are soft against his, and Durbe finds himself unsure of what to do. He'd never been kissed like this before, never been wanted romantically by anyone before, and he doesn't want to make a bad impression. So he lets himself act on instinct, and leans into the simple kiss, his arms naturally sliding down to wrap around her waist, to hold her close. When he feels her smile against his lips, he feels a sense of accomplishment.

No sooner than when Merag pulls away from their kiss and steps back does Nasch step in to take her place, giving Durbe little time to breathe before Nasch's lips meet his. His are soft too, but not as soft as Merag's. His lips are a bit drier, a bit more damaged from his bad habit of chewing on them during council meetings. But Durbe doesn't care, he's too busy pulling Nasch in closer, one hand at his side, the other cupping his face. Nasch mimics the movements, placing a hand at Durbe's side and gently cupping Durbe's face. Durbe's the one to smile into the kiss this time, realizing that Nasch is letting him make all the first moves.

When Nasch pulls away from their kiss, Durbe moves his hand from Nasch's face and instead reaches over for Merag, pulling her in so he could hug them both. He rests his forehead on Nasch's shoulder, but manages to lean it against Merag's head, so that he's touching both twins at the same time. "I promise not to let this affect my duties as your knight."

"We know." The twins answer in unison, and they both turn their heads to kiss Durbe's cheeks, a laugh escaping the knight as they did so.

* * *

All was well until war entered their lives, eventually claiming them all at different points. They're reborn as Barians with no memory of their previous life, and die once more shortly after recollecting their lost memories. They're revived for a second time by the Numeron Code, and Durbe wakes up to two hands outstretched in front of him, belonging to Nasch and Merag, each wanting to help him up from the ground.

He matches their smiling faces with a smile of his own and takes both of their hands, pulling himself up. Thanks to Yuma and Astral, they're human again, Barian no longer. This third life would be their last. 

He's surprised however, as he's hugged tightly from both sides, Merag nuzzling her face in his shoulder as she cries, and Nasch pressing his forehead against the side of Durbe's head, the only thing tipping Durbe off that he too was crying was the warm wet feeling that was currently dripping onto his shoulder. Why were they crying?

Oh. That's right. His last action before dying had been making them watch as he sacrificed himself to Vector for them.

He's quick to wrap his arms around them, holding them tight. "I'm sorry." He murmurs softly, only for them to hear. "I'm so sorry." He brushes his thumbs against their backs, Nasch's little sniffles and Merag's little hiccups tugging at his heart. He never meant to hurt them like this. How could he make this better?

He's silent for a moment, before speaking from the heart. "You know I love you both, right? I love you both, so much."

He hears Merag laugh through her cries, and Nasch click his tongue and feels him shake his head.

"Just... Don't pull another stunt like that ever again." Nasch chides, and Durbe feels Merag nod her agreement at her brother's words. 

"I won't." Durbe concedes, a small smile pulling at his lips. "I promise."

* * *

Durbe adapts to modern life easily, as do the rest of the Barians, all of them living in Nasch and Merag's(Who now go by Ryoga and Rio) family's mansion, it being more than enough to accommodate the seven of them.

Its been a week now since they've been revived, and after a tiring day, Durbe decides to turn in early, beginning to head upstairs to his room. He's surprised when Rio and Ryoga stop their respective activities to walk with him to his room, but smirks to himself, hoping he was right in what was coming next.

He's proven right as the twins stop outside his door, and Ryoga takes his hand, and Rio leans up, the twins simultaneously kissing him on the back of his hand, and on his cheek respectively.

Durbe laughs happily at their actions, wrapping his arms around them. He then pulls Ryoga in for a brief kiss, then repeats the move with Rio, kissing her as well.

They're too caught up in each other to pay any mind to Vector, who's poked his head out from his room at the commotion, making an unamused face and calling out, "Get a room!"


End file.
